T V Give-Away!!

Ginger posted on her blog that 5 Minutes for Mom is having an awesome giveaway! It's a a 37″ Flat-Panel LCD HDTV from Best Buy.

Gee, how could I NOT enter?? You can, too. Just head over to 5 Minutes for Mom and follow the guidelines. May the best...er...luckiest blogger win!!

Redneck Tenors

Ok, this is talented and hysterical!! You'll have to stop the music on my music player first. Hey...3 posts in one day. I've set a new personal record! =o)

Matt's Baptism

Matt was baptised a few weeks ago. He asked about it a couple of times during the school year, so I figured he was ready. We have a fountain in front of our church, so that's where they did it. I thought I'd share the pictures.

This is our children's pastor, Pastor James, talking with Matt.

Here they are praying right before.

Yey Matt!

I hope everybody has a great weekend! =o)

An Award

Susan from Penless Writer has nominated me for this award.

It is described as: For those who answer blog comments, emails & make their visitors feel at home on their blogs. For the people who take others feelings into consideration before speaking out & who are kind & courteous. Also for all those bloggers who spend so much of their time helping other bloggers design, improve & fix their sites. This award is for those generous bloggers who think of others.

Susan so sweetly said this about me: "Ruth is another one that really deserves this Thoughtful award. All her posts are just that, Thoughtful, and her comments are always sweet and share in your feelings of your post. Ruth is also the one that first introduce me to Blogger Chick on her blog and I had to have one, too!!! Thank you Ruth for your friendship."

Thank you so much, Susan. I have loved getting to know you and all of your adventures throughout life. I greatly admire you and your blog, so the nomination from you is very special. Thank you for this award. I enjoy reading and commenting on peoples blogs, and I value the friendship of the people I have gotten to know. However, I, like you, have not been able to contribute to the technical aspects of blogs, but I'm still learning!! Susan, I must tell you that it was Lyndy who introduced me to blogchick.

I would like to bestow this award to EVERYBODY on my blog list. You are all very special. I feel so encouraged when each one of you comments on my posts. I've tried several time to "pick 3" or "pick 5", but I can't. You are all thoughtful, helpful, wonderful people. So, although it seems I'm taking the easy way out, I'm really not. I looked at every name on my blogroll, and each one of you deserves this. (If you regularly visit my blog and I have mistakenly left you off my blogroll, please leave me a note and I will add you.) Thank you each for welcoming me into your world.

Gasp!

I must let you all know that I am now the mother of TWO TEENAGERS!!! I'm a little late posting this. My son Ben turned 13 last Thursday. We didn't have his party until Friday night, so I waited to post a few pictures.

Ben is such a blessing to us. He has accomplished more than we ever thought possible, and I know he will continue to amaze us. When you get an "autistic" diagnosis for your child, your brain automatically heads to the worst case scenario. But with a lot of prayer and hard work, Ben has gone further than I ever thought he would. I no longer have limits in my mind.

He has certain things he thinks a teenager should be able to do, especially since he's watched his sister do them...like stay home alone. I'm still trying to delicately explain why, even though he is now a teen, that he can't. His voice is in the process of changing, and he has that classic squeak to low voice. I teach kids his age, and he has the most classic change of voice that I've ever heard. =o)

He is heading into 7th grade in the fall. Things are getting harder quickly school-wise, so I am a little nervous about next year. In 7th grade our school ups the expectations, so I know we'll be doing more at home, which I am not looking forward to. However, God has a plan for my little man, and I will wait in expectation for that to unfold.

HAPPY 13TH BIRTHDAY, BEN!!

Lions! Tigers! Bears! Oh My!!

We have reached the next stage of decluttering. Thus far the kitchen, our bedroom and closet, and the attic have all been gone through and TONS of stuff have been pitched, given to the neighbors or to Goodwill. We have now reached the boys (aka toy) room. The first step undertaken today is STUFFED ANIMALS. Let me proceed to amaze you at the amount....

This picture I think gives the best perspective of the amount, although I couldn't quite get all of them in this shot. My dog Toby fits right in....

Here is a shot of Matt with a pile of "keepers". They have just started sorting. (Did you notice I said THEY?!)

This is a closeup of the biggest pile. I wish I would have grabbed the camera before they started sorting. I tried to get them to repile, but they refused. LOL!!

So here is today's project! I wonder how many I'll be able to part with. (Did you notice I said I'LL?)

Obedience vs. Passion

I have been praying a lot this summer about my motivations of why I do things, especially in serving God. I realized that somewhere along the way I had begun to do things strictly out of "have to" instead of "want to". And I wondered why it had changed and what to do about it. I didn't want my activities to change because I knew they were the right thing for me to do, but I wanted my attitude to change toward them. My prayer has become, "Lord, change my obedience into passion!"

There is a little boy who lives down the street whose parents are involved with drugs. The whole family lives at his grandma's house, who has been my neighbor for years. This little boy and my son have become friends, and he spends a lot of time over at our house. He likes to eat supper with us, and his family is fine with that. Then the other day, I realized that he doesn't get fed lunch very often. I told him to come over at lunch time and I'd feed him lunch. (Of course, this has broken my heart.) When I was talking to my daughter about this, she said, "God is going to bless you for this, Mom."

I realized that, even though that would be great, that is not why I am doing this. I am doing this for the sole reason that I want to, and my heart would break if I didn't. It dawned on me that THIS is the attitude I need to have in all things Christ has called me to do. I don't want to do them because I "should" and God will bless me for it, but because I really want to and my heart will break if I don't. That, to me, is passion.

Lord, change my heart. Break my heart over the things that break yours. Let my obedience become passion.

Take a poll!

Leigh Ann from Momma Roar showed me the new poll option in blogland. Perfect timing! So, if you don't mind, feel free to vote on my side bar for the look of my blog. Do you like this new pink look or do you prefer my old subtle green dot approach? It's not like this affects the state of the nation or anything, but I think voting is fun!! Thanks for you input.

Pink or Dots?

Should I change my blog to this new pink or keep the green dots? That is the question. Voting polls are now open. =o)

Internet purchases

How many of you have made internet purchases? It has become a norm for me over the years. Well, amazon.com has this lovely little purchasing tool called "purchase with one click". Fast forward to this afternoon. Beth is on the computer looking at a video game she has been thinking about buying. She usually surfs, finds what she wants, calls me, and I place the order. She was checking out both ebay and amazon. I'm in the kitchen scrubbing a huge pot, and she comes in with this sheepish/panicked look and asks for my help. I didn't want to go to the computer with spaghetti up to my elbows, so I asked the simple question of, "Why?" She said, "I think I just purchased something from amazon." I asked, "How?" She said, "I didn't think if clicked on 'purchase with one click' that I'd actually purchase it." My eyebrows raised. She then commented that the screen said "Thank you for your order." Let's just say that we had a little chat about what "purchase with one click" means and THEN she forked over the $30 bucks she now owed me. Good thing she was planning on purchasing it anyway.... I guess I should be thankful she wasn't "looking" at a $1,000 flat screen tv (however much one of those might cost). Sheesh!!

Nails

My sister-in-law sent this to me. I hadn't seen it before, but I thought it had a good message behind it, so I thought I'd share it.

There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper.

The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there. " A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.

Isn't that good? I do disagree, however, with the idea that the wounds can never go away. When we process hurts and wounds at the cross, the hurt and wounds CAN be healed. However, I thought it was a valid point to remember that words are so easy to release from our mouths and yet they cause much damage.

Have a blessed day!

A Fun Day!!

We had a great time yesterday. In college my husband and I were involved in a Christian organization called Chi Alpha. It sounds like a sorority/fraternity, but it's not. It is a Christian fellowship that are actually on college campuses throughout the U.S. This is where Josh and I met. It is also where Trella and Bruce met. Many of us have maintained close friendships from this time together. We get together twice a year at 4th of July, which we usually host, and Christmas which another couple hosts. It is always a lot of fun gathering and watching our kids grow up. Yesterday, to my best count, we had 33 of us (counting kids) smashed into my little house. It rained the first half of it, but then the rain stopped and the kids were able to go swimming.

Here is a picture of all of us. We were missing several families, so our count was a little lower than it is usually, but we always have fun seeing whomever can come.

Here are the kids in the pool. They were feeling a little claustrophobic in my house before the weather finally cleared enough for them to jump in.

I really felt how much our decluttering worked to my advantage yesterday. It was pretty easy to get my house ready for the party, and it was so nice to bring people into my bedroom to see some pictures on my computer and not have to make excuses for the mess. It's not like I've redone anything, but it finally looks like a bedroom is supposed to look...dresser tops and floor visible without stacks of clutter and dust everywhere. I told Beth that a miracle had occurred...I was actually able to vacuum the entire floor of the house. We still have some work to do, like the attic and the boys' room, which is MAJOR, but it feels so nice to look like a house should look.

I hope everybody had a great day yesterday! TTFN!!

Happy Birthday America!

I wanted to wish everybody a very happy 4th of July! I hope that your plans turn out wonderful and your BBQ is delicious!! =o) Also remembering our soldiers past and present because our nation would not be here without them. Freedom is not free. Thank you, Lord, for this great country. Have a great day!

Lookin for a few good...

FISH RECIPIES!!

I know that many of you are experts in the kitchen. I am lacking in good fish recipies. My family loves fish, but I never cook any. If you have any you'd like to share, I'd be most obliged. The simpler and quicker the better, but even a yummy, more complicated recipe would be ok, too. You can post it in the comments, e-mail me (joshruthburton@bellsouth.net), or send me a link if you already have some posted as I know many of you blog recipies.

Thanks for your help!